Having the site down allowed for a tremendous amount of backend work to be done (a more thorough IT explanation in the next post). For those not familiar with that side of things, an analogy would be that we were constantly maintaining, patching and repairing a crumbling building. The last few days enabled the old building to be demolished, new foundations laid, materials tested and then assembled.

Now, we can, without constant distraction,...

Last post

Hope no one minds but I'm going to close/lock this thread and correspond directly with the posters above via email. Juggling a few too many things atm, still IT stuff :dunno: .

goulaigan will be first on my list of emails. The email will be called rsync nightmare.

:) Thanks again for the above,
Pat

P.S. That busy that Sarah and I haven't even had a beer together in the last fortnight :O

The following problems should only affect a tiny fraction of users.
If using Google Chrome, you may find ; upon registration, after solving the Captcha or 'Sortable' correctly you are told you are incorrect; not being able to login using your proper username and password; when posting, finding the 'Add Files' button not working.

Solution/s

This problem is extremely rare although a few users on other phpBB forum software...

Last post

Got a strange one Pat & Sarah. I received a My first post notification so I clicked on it...It took me to page 324 . Seems to be 327 pages :think: :think: :think: Tried it 3x and same result..I went back to yesterdays email and the notification went through properly ..
J

As mentioned in the post 2017 - A Major New Year for the Site , an incredible amount of work has been spent on the new site structure, which will make the information on BIABrewer.info fast and easy to find.

In this thread, I'll try to explain the coming changes in a series of posts, which I'll endeavour to write every few days or so. These updates will include, but not be limited to:

Why 2017 and Not...

Last post

NOTE: IF YOU USE GMAIL, PLEASE ADD OUR WEBMASTER EMAIL TO YOUR LIST OF SAFE SENDERS
Hi there shetc and thanks for your questions.

In the temporary skin (the one with green header) active topics can be changed at the bottom. In the Gold skin, this option is accessed by clicking the filter button arrowed in the pic below BUT that button is failing (see Update below).

In the new site structure, recipes will be much easier to find but I like your idea of being able to search for posts with...

[Like all, The Basics, in the General Brewing Skills section, the following is not a definitive guide. It is simply a guide that will get a new brewer under way safely and with confidence. Please advise BIABrewer of any errors. Please justify, in full, any contrary topics that you may choose to start in this forum. If well-written and justified, they will be, promoted, as best as we are able.]

All brewers, new and experienced, are encouraged to start new topics in this section provided they...

they recommend mixing up solution and letting sit in the container for a hour.
was wondering just how it reacts with metal.

Last post

I used the stuff today
put it in and one hour later it had done an amazing job just sitting there, I finished the cleaning with a brush and sponge having to add no new cleaner.
I then rinsed twice and then used starsan as a no rinse sanitizer. It came out nice.

Next time I am just buying the oxicleaner everyone posted about, this was a bit pricey. I have to say it is worth it, but if I can get the same stuff for a lot less then I will.

I am posting at a complete loss.
I took up home brewing in Jan 2012, using BIAB, had over a year of great homebrew (11 or 12 batches), and considered myself to be quite a good brewer. Then something happened -I have been plagued by some sort of contamination, and by my reckoning have now dumped EIGHT batches due to this elastoplast/bandaid off flavour. That's basically eight months of brewing, time money and effort wasted.

I brew all grain in a stainless steel pot with a propane...

Last post

I hope that Non-Operational has not given up. All the variables discussed so far include the usual suspects and then some. Experience from my former job might open some more possible problem sources. If you made good beer at your new location before things went South, something changed and your super sanitising efforts haven't overcome that change.. Local wild yeast invading your batches is an interesting theory, but inverted empty bottles, covered vessels and proper pitch rates & temperatures...

I have four HDPE 25 litre Jerry can style containers that I'd like to re-use for no chill storage or fermentation.

Problem is, they've previously been used to transport heating oil (Kerosene), all containers were rinsed after use and then stored for a good while now. I've checked that they are all clean but they still smell of fuel.

Can anyone recommend a cleaning regimen or advise if the fuel could have somehow contaminated the plastic itself?

I guess I'm asking that if I can get...

Last post

Broonzy.

Below is what I use. I don't know where you are located but something similar?

Search the internet for No-Chill and search YouTube for No-Chill.
See the video at the end.

I bought a box of sodium percarbonate. Could I use it to soak my siphon and hoses? What would be a proper concentration?

Last post

hmm.. mine says purity >30%. Maybe I'll use 50g/liter? I've been using it today to clean old labels off of bottles. Some labels come off so that you are left with a sticky layer of glue; percarbonate takes care of that quite nicely.

The Mad Scientist and I were having a conversation about filtration and air contamination. This is likely to occur during the vacuum release of the No Chill It seems to me that this is one of the places that contamination/infection can get into the wort. Having a business in rowing exotic mushrooms I am constantly watching for this problem.

Yeast and mycelium are very close from the stand point of how each work in their respective environments.

In the production of...

Last post

Hey there Roger,

Sorry I missed your location before. It's at the top of your posts now for sure so I'm probably just going mad/der :lol:.

Short on time so I can't really afford to write detailed answers atm as the sort of time/concentration required for these sort of answers is time that is taken directly away from BIABacus work unfortunately. I also want to write this chilling stuff up far better (and define it/name it better) than what I'll jot down here now. Anyway, hopefully it and...

For the last 3ish years I've rinsed bottles out straight after using them with water a few times prior to storing. I then sanitizer with starsan and then drain before refilling. I've never had a problem with this method but should I be scrubbing them as well? If so with what? Can the dishwasher do the job for me also?

Thanks all,
James

Last post

I soak at least 24hrs in Oxy Clean, this removes most labels and glue wipes off pretty easily. I also scrub with bottle brush before removing from a 30 gallon tub (half full of liquid at most).

After a recent dishwashing cycle, I'll load it full of bottles and run it on the heat cycle with no soap. Then, I store them after leaving them to dry a bit.

On bottling day I'll soak them in star san for a few minutes, hit with bottle brush again ... drain/rinse and fill then cap immediately....

Hello guys!
Can those of you who use iodophor for sanitizing tell me how it works? I mean, it really stains the plastic parts? If so, are the stains very bad or just a bit of change in color?
Until now i have used Chemipro OXI but now i find that iodophor can be a bit cheaper and, i hope, a bit efficient also (i had an infected beer the last time i brewed, so i want to improve my sanitizing)
Does any of you know if Iodophor is stronger/better than Chemipro OXI? (European brewers should heard...

Under advisement from my LHBS I currently leave 1litre of water with 1tbsp of Sodium MetabisulphateI in the bottom of my fermenters and no chill containers between uses. This is to prevent any bacterial growth. I usually then toss this when I use the container. However I am getting stingy in my old age and am looking to reuse these solutions.

This stuff really whiffs and stings your eyes and nostrils when you first open the container which I take is a sign it's still in good nick but I am not...

Last post

Thks again for the input, I do what skink does and now I understand it is the fumes that sterilise. I must admit I hate them and did not realise this wasnt widely used in brewing. Having to rinse with boiling water annoys me as well.

I just assumed all sterilisers had a whiff, chlorine, Bleach (which is just weak chlorine anyway), etc all smell.

I've always thought that cleaning/sanitisation is totally under-thought in home-brewing. Am short on time atm (BIABrewer is working me to death) so won't write this post out perfectly but I'm pretty excited about the following...

I just did a brew with Nottingham which must be the biggest bastard of a yeast to clean up after. Last night I even tried scraping at the krausen line with my fingernail and was amazed that the stuff still wouldn't come off. I had resigned myself to filling the whole...

Last post

I usually just spray the inside of the fermenter with a fine jet of water from the garden tap, this takes off most of the krausen layer. I then wipe the thing out with a microfibre cloth then give it another hose with hot water to rinse the crap out. I then spray the whole thing with idophore. Done. Never had an infection (touch wood)

Do you unscrew the element and pull it from the kettle after every brew for cleaning? Intellectually it sounds like that's the way to go (clean clean clean everything always), but I'm wondering if it's overkill?

Thanks,

AJ

Last post

Mine has a water heater element in it, I just give it a scrub with a scotchbrite pad to remove any grunge while I'm cleaning my pot, and then rinse. No need remove as it's easily accessible.

Washing and sanitising kegs, has taken over from bottling as being the bane of my life. I’d rather be brewing and being creative. It’s like being stuck with the washing up after cooking a great meal. I need Help!...please!

1. Does anyone have any good time efficient tips on cleaning and sanitising kegs please?

2. Does anyone fill a keg when it becomes empty, right away, without cleaning and sanitising, on occasion. I did it once with a test batch I wasn’t worried about and got away with it....

Last post

Both, One Step came with a start up kit when I first started brewing. I bought more when it was gone and when that was used up I wanted to try something else and I tried StarSan. I never looked back! The only infections I had were from a leaky connection on my immersion chiller. Now I no-chill and am infection free!

Does anyone know anything about using hydrogen peroxide to sanitize the kegs and the lines. I believe it is used in commercial brewing, but don’t know if it is used on a small scale. Hydrogen peroxide is nice to work with and degrades to oxygen and water only which obviously are harmless (I wouldn’t want it to oxidise the beer though). At the biochem lab where my wife works they have moved over to hydrogen peroxide for sterilizing for the same reasons. I believe it would be diluted in water...

Last post

Listening to it (supposed to be doing chores though)
Interesting :think:

How many times or for how long can Starsan be re-used? Could you make a 5 gallon batch and keep dunking brewing equipment in it over and over again to sanitize them? Would it eventually expire or be used up?

Last post

I wouldn't bother trying to re-use starsan either, you use such a small amount, it lasts for ages.

I make up 5 litres on kegging day. This sanitises my keg, bottles, all other equipment and the fermenter ready for the next brew.
5ml makes 5 litres, 1 litre of starsan is going to last more than a year, cheap as chips.

First, Let me start by saying I am a tight wad; With that said, I recently discovered two things 1) Avery inexpensive alternative for Iodophor in the form of teat dip at a local farm store. 2) Starsan; I like this product over Iodophor because I don't care for the iodine stains although given the cost difference I can learn to live with them. I was wondering if there are any inexpensive products out there that are similar to Starsan?

Thanks for any feedback.

Last post

Yeah, I could....

But I really need the three litres on brew day because I sanitize 4 cubes at once, any left over goes into a soak bucket which I then use to refresh my kegerator spray bottle.

I could keep the sanitizer around but i toss it as storing a bucket of sanitizer is something I don't need to do and I have a toddler and my water chemistry means it goes cloudy quickly.

On brew day I don't need that much, but again WTH and Keg day I sometimes use less.

I use pbw to clean but know a lot of people use napisan to clean there gear. I have used napisan before but found this stuff and was wondering if anyone uses this as it was cheaper.
Its Coles ultra booster plus. Doesn't say anywhere That its scented but its gotta fairly strong smell.

Last post

Just an update on this, been using this Coles ultra booster without any problem at all. Even removes the faint wort smell from no chill cube that was still around when napisan was used.
And for the price $2.70 I'll continue to use this for a long time.
P.s i always follow up with starsan.

Having started brewing in Canada in the late 1980's there was no such thing as the internet or user forums etc.You could hardly find dextrose!
My knowledge was strictly what Uncle Charlie Papazian said, and I still believe in his word as the fall back if I'm not sure of something.My edition of TCJHB was published in(I think 1987).
BTW I have lots of Zymurgy mags of the same era.(cool reading now)
Charlie always professed that household bleach was a good sanitzer.Now that I have switched to...

Last post

Do not rinse, the foaming layer is a protective layer on the inside of whatever you have just sanitised. If you rinse it you are doing two things, removing the protective layer of foam that will stop any airborne stuff landing on your sanitsed surfaces and you are also reintroducing non-sterile water.

I have taken on the challenge of cleaning them through well before they are used. They were pretty dirty, have old spent grains in them, dark stains, etc. They are basically a mess and I tisk tisk the previous owner for not cleaning post brew.

I've so far pulled apart the ball lock and fitting components.

What sorts of cleaners should I use? There are stainless fittings and brass...

Last post

And it also neutralizes the alkaline cleanser if you didn't rinse it thoroughly enough

How do you guys clean, sanitize, and store your siphon hoses? I'm always a little nervous with mine when I can see moisture in them days after I've washed and/or rinsed them. I usually stick the whole hose in sanitizer right after I transfer wort or beer then I plunge the sanitizer with my autosiphon through it a number of times. I then whip the hose around in the air and hang it up to dry. On brew day, I do the same with my cleaning solution then again with my sanitizer just before I transfer....

Last post

I have a silicone hose for transferring hot wort to the no chill cube. This gets cleaned after transferring, and cleaned before brewing, both times with sodium pre-carbonate.

My vinyl hose for racking to secondary and keg, gets soaked in cleaning solution the day before. Then when I fill my secondary up with idophor to sanitize, I firstly rinse the tube then hook the hose up to the tap and drain the idophor out through to a small bucket and into a spray bottle. I then submerge the hose in the...

Forum permissions

You cannot post new topics in this forumYou cannot reply to topics in this forumYou cannot edit your posts in this forumYou cannot delete your posts in this forumYou cannot post attachments in this forum